


I assume we'll go to the musain?

by Luckyfsh



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: Café Musain, M/M, Miscommunication, Mutual Pining, POV Outsider
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-20
Updated: 2017-06-20
Packaged: 2018-11-16 17:36:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11257659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Luckyfsh/pseuds/Luckyfsh
Summary: The café Musain served many uses. A meeting place, a cafe, a bar. It had hosted business meetings, and the beginnings of a new novel. The open front room, with wide windows looking out on the bustling street was the perfect place to sit and enjoy a conversation with a good friend. The darker back room was perfect for planning, quotes from famous inventors, politicians, and writers covering the wall, a small R scrawled by the door stop.One of its most utilized purposes was for first dates. The front room provided open views and a quick escape for a first meeting, and the darkened corners of the back room held the perfect room for two bodies, provided they sat close.It was an established fact that if two people were seen huddled over the small tables, heads bent close, that they were on a date.Enjolras and Grantaire were the exception.





	I assume we'll go to the musain?

The café Musain served many uses. A meeting place, a cafe, a bar. It had hosted business meetings, and the beginnings of a new novel. The open front room, with wide windows looking out on the bustling street was the perfect place to sit and enjoy a conversation with a good friend. The darker back room was perfect for planning, quotes from famous inventors, politicians, and writers covering the wall, a small R scrawled by the door stop.

 One of its most utilized purposes was for first dates. The front room provided open views and a quick escape for a first meeting, and the darkened corners of the back room held the perfect room for two bodies, provided they sat close.

 Most of the Amis had used the musain for a first date. The first time Joly and Bossuet met in person after years of online dating, was at the Musain. It was also where they met Musichetta, although that was not planned. Courfeyrac could look at any table in the building and tell a story about a date that had taken place there, successful or not. Bahorel claimed to have met his girlfriend in the back room, although no one could verify seeing as she had never returned.

 It was an established fact that if two people were seen huddled over the small tables, heads bent close, that they were on a date.

 Enjolras and Grantaire were the exception.

 --

 The first time they were seen huddled together in the back room, it was by Jehan. They walked into the back room, then walked back out, rushing up to the counter to where Eponine was standing, cup of coffee clutched in her hands and began to practically gush “How long had that been happening!?”

 “Hmm?” Eponine had been working for the Musain for longer than the rest of the Amis had known about it, and while she loved Jehan, sometimes they could be a bit...much for a Tuesday morning shift. Still she lifted her eyes to meet theirs, trying not to wince at the bowtie _and_ neck scarf they were wearing. “How long has what been happening? The new cups?”

“What? No! You know…. Those two getting their shit together!” Jehan was practically vibrating with excitement- They had watched and written about Enjolras and Grantaire, forever separated by their own inability to be honest with each other.

 They had seen Enjolras watch R clutch a bottle close after an argument, seen the longing and regret. They had seen R sketch until his hand was raw, drawn to Enjolras like it was the only thing keeping him tethered some days, drawing his attention in any way, even when it left him despondent.

 “Who got their shit together?” Eponine had watched the different couples form and break within the Amis, and knew that it could refer to any of them, Courfeyrac and Combeferre, Bahorel and his girl, Joly Bossuet and Musichetta, or hell, some random couple Jehan had seen “tragic potential in”. She was much less invested in the patrons of the Musain than they had the tendency to be.

 “Enjolras and R! They’re having a date! They looks so cute, huddled together! How long have they been in the back room?”

 Almost as soon as the words had left their mouth, the curtain to the back room was flung open.Grantaire stormed out almost shouting, “If you insist on hating everything about me, at least be honest about it!”

 “R-wait- just-- I was just-” Enjolras was quick on his heels, spouting an explanation, but Grantaire was already gone, the door banging shut behind him. Not seeing Jehan or Eponine, he stared after Grantaire for a long moment, before turning back to the back room. Moments later he appeared with his bag, leaving without sparing the rest of the cafe a glance, hands clenching and unclenching as he threw the door open and stormed out onto the street.

 “Well, at least they figured out that they wouldn’t work well?” Eponine offered fidgeting with the tip jar. Not that it fooled Jehan- she wanted Enjolras and Grantaire to work out as much as the rest of the Amis. They had all watched them circle each other for much too long to hope for anything short of a fairytale ending.

 “I just wish- I wish-” Jehan tried to articulate, but could find quite what they wished. That R was more confident, that Enjolras was kinder, that they could pull their heads out of their asses.

 Later that night they sent Enjolras a text.

  **Hey I’m sorry your date didn’t work out.**

  _What date?_

  **You and R? Alone? At the Musain?**

**Was it supposed to be a secret?**

**Sorry**

  _No, Je that wasn’t a date, it was a meeting_

  **Well it looked like a date.**

**If you asked it to be a date R would say yes**

  _Good Night Je_

  **Night Enjolras**

 --

 Courfeyrac was perhaps the most obvious. In his defense, it was about two am when he caught them smoking together, alone, behind the dumpsters at the Musain. It was 2 am and he had had a shots competition with Eponine at midnight. So he staggered up to the two, standing close to share a light, and leered “Is this a post-sex smoke?”

 Well. No one can say he was in full control of himself. And that was what it looked like. Evreyone knew it. They would spend hours together at the Musan just talking, about politics, or art, or the sky or the fucking color purple. They were dating, _they went on dates_ , but they couldn’t admit it.

 He just wants them to be _happy_. Enjolras was so anxious and irritable all the time- he had never really dealt with a crush before and Courfeyrac would be so much more sympathetic, he had done his fair amount of pinning, except there was _no need_. Grantaire was head over heels for Enjolras but refused to do anything about it and Enjolras still turned red at the mention of sex so he wasn’t going to do anything. Sometimes a relationship needs a little jumpstart and Courfeyrac wasn't afraid to be that jumpstart.

 Or the rum rushing around his body wasn’t.

 Enjolras jumped away from Grantaire, and Courfeyrac could see the flinch he caused clear across the alley. This might have not been a good idea because now Enjolras looked mad and confused, he was never one for moving any faster or slower that he wanted to, and Grantaire looked like he didn’t quite know what was going on, until Courfeyrac saw him figure it out and-

 “COURF Wh- what the hell?” Grantaire turned on him, voice filled with sadness. Or anger. It was hard to tell sometimes with Grantaire.

 “Courfeyrac what are you thinking, I would never-,” Enjolras began to splutter, “Not in a million years!” And oh lord, Enjolras was too embarrassed, or too drunk, or too tired to hear what he was saying because hardly had the words left his mouth before Grantaire was looking at him, eyes filling with hurt.

 “Okay then” R whispered, already walking back into the club, most likely on his way to the closest bottle of booze.

 Enjolras tipped his head back against the alley wall. “Thanks Courf. Thanks so much.” He pushed his way off the wall, looking very, very, tired. “I'm going home. See you in class.”

  ** _Corfu_**

**_Thanks becase now i know he donst like me adn never will so i dnot have to try anymor_ **

**_Hed never in a billion yeras_ **

**_I lovr him so so much_ **

**_Adn tonigh wasnt wat it llooked like_ **

**_Becuase he woudl never touvh me_ **

**_And i knw it now_ **

**_I love tou_ **

**_And i love him_ **

 Courfeyrac was in half the mind to send it to Enjolras but he had clearly done enough. Hopefully he just hadn’t set them back to much.

  _Have some water dude. I love you too._

\--

 Joly, although sometimes tending towards the anxious, was pragmatic at his core. He was done with watching the two of them carefully pretend to not be interested. And sometimes a direct and gentle _but not crude_ method was best.

 And sometimes you just need to yell to get your friends to pull their shit together.

 “IF YOU MEET SOMEONE YOU ARE INTERESTED IN AT THE MUSAIN- IT'S A DATE. WHY DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND THAT?”

 “Joly what are you talking about?” Grantaire was blushing, but his tone was startling even. He and Enjolras were sitting next to each other in the window seat in the front room of the cafe, looking more cuddly than the actual couple at the table next to them.

 Enjolras looked less composed. “That's not true. You and Combeferre met here just this morning, and that wasn’t a date. Me and R are just friends.” Enjolras looking at him like he wanted to kill him. Probably because Joly was interrupting his one-on-one time with Grantaire.

 His regular, one-on-one meeting with someone who he was romantically interested in were they talked about common interests. And bought each other coffee. But they were so afraid to communicate it was ‘a meeting, not a date”.

 Sometimes Joly thinks the only way Enjolras was the leader was his hair. If anyone saw how hopeless he was with interpersonal communication they’d never let him speak at another rally ever again.

 “Yeah Joly, me and Enjolras just ran into each other, this wasn’t planned. We figured that if we went through the talking points for tonight's meeting then he might actually be able to think up counter points once I destroy he had planned.

 “Hm- that’s funny, I thought we were getting your obligatory shit talking out of the way so we don’t waste our friends time tonight.”

 “Really- because my shit talking doesn’t end. That's all I am. One day I’ll shit talk so much that I'll just disappear- my essence all used up.” They were grinning at each other, looking like they wouldn’t even notice if the rest of the world disappeared.

 It was sickening. And Joly studied sickening. They didn’t even deny that they were interested in each other.

 “-and when you think about it, it could provide an interesting perspective on queer relationships. If it looks like a date, but it's between two people of the same gender, people will assume it's not romantic- but if a man and a woman are remotely close to each other people assume it's a date because it just ‘looks like a date’.”

 “Sure apollo, but you’re taking it too far, if someone saw two girls sitting holding hands, they’d assume it was a date- that's how street harassment happens. Literally yesterday you were arguing about how there needs to be more support for queer couples in public, you can’t turn around and say that they aren’t acknowledged in any way-”

 Joly snapped his fingers.

 “-I mean both happen, just because I'm focusing on one-”

 He waved his hands.

 “-You are not ‘focusing on one issue at a time’ yesterday you said it was oppression that all queer couples face each time they go out and not today you just said the _same thing_ even though they directly contradict-”

 Un-fucking-believable.

  **JEHAN**

**I’m so sick of it**

**Its making me sick**

**When i see them i start to get a migraine. And chills**

**Is stupidity contagious?**

  **They’ll figure it out.**

**They’re so close.**

**They hardly ever fight anymore. I think they need to figure it out on their own**

 --

  _R_

  ** _why are you texting me at 7 in the morning_**

**_i was texting you at 3 in the morning. you should know im be asleep_ **

  _I’m texting you at 7 in the morning so you will know not to text me at 3 in the morning anymore_

_Anyway._

_If I were to ask you out, would you say yes_

  ** _what_**

**_are you serious_ **

**_wait don't answer that_ **

**_yes._ **

**_if you are serious_ **

**_fuck you if you arent_ **

**_fuck you if this is courf_ **

**_why arent you answering_ **

  _Sorry_

_I had to put my phone down_

_I was doing a victory dance and didn’t want to drop it_

  ** _youre a dork holy shit_**

**_im going on a date with a dork_ **

**_i assume we’ll go to the musain?_ **

  _And let all our friends see us?_

  ** _good point_**

**_i know a good creperie four stops away from any of our friends apartments_ **

  _Perfect._

**Author's Note:**

> This is for exr week 2017 prompt 2: not what it looks like  
> Also not at all the prompt but oh well?  
> all typos are mine  
> Thank you for reading!


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